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missk
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Posted: Tue Oct 14th, 2008 05:30 pm |
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Razorback75 wrote: If the owner takes the animal in to Animal Control, I don't think they have to keep it seven days. I think they can adopt it out the next day. The owner signs away ownership to the county when they turn the dog in. The seven day rule is for animals they find or someone brings in a stray -- they are holding them in case the owner comes to find them. But if you take a dog in and say you don't want it, they don't give you 7 days to change your mind. They adopt it out as soon as someone wants it. The county does not want to pay to board any animals they can adopt out as quickly as possible.
It sounds like there is a lot of miscommunication going on. Maybe the animal control office needs to make sure all staff members are trained in the official policies and what to tell people. As in, when you sign the dog in it becomes the county's property and you no longer have any rights to it. If you come back for it, it may or may not be here. It may be euthanized or it may be adopted by someone else.
I'm sure you are correct, once turned over to animal control, it then belongs to them. Yes, they can adopt it out next day, problem is, animals aren't getting adopted or moved to other shelters enough. Most of the animals are being euthanized. it's sad, being murdered just because they were born.(Because of humans). I'm sorry, but killing is killing in my book and killing is a sin, regardless of animal or human. We need to get that spay/neuter program in this town and fast.
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Razorback75
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Posted: Tue Oct 14th, 2008 03:54 pm |
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If the owner takes the animal in to Animal Control, I don't think they have to keep it seven days. I think they can adopt it out the next day. The owner signs away ownership to the county when they turn the dog in. The seven day rule is for animals they find or someone brings in a stray -- they are holding them in case the owner comes to find them. But if you take a dog in and say you don't want it, they don't give you 7 days to change your mind. They adopt it out as soon as someone wants it. The county does not want to pay to board any animals they can adopt out as quickly as possible.
It sounds like there is a lot of miscommunication going on. Maybe the animal control office needs to make sure all staff members are trained in the official policies and what to tell people. As in, when you sign the dog in it becomes the county's property and you no longer have any rights to it. If you come back for it, it may or may not be here. It may be euthanized or it may be adopted by someone else.
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missk
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Posted: Tue Oct 14th, 2008 12:24 pm |
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okee24 wrote: About the same thing happen to one of my friends when he took his dog to animal control. His mother inlaw told him that his dog had showed its teeth to his 1 year old son. He had his wife take the dog to animal control on a friday and told them they where moving and could not keep the dog and animal control gave them i quess a reciept saying they could come back and get the dog within 7 days. As the weekend went on the mother inlaws story started to change and it turned out the dog did nothing wrong she just wanted it gone because it was a pitt bull. So he went back to get the dog on monday or tuesday and animal control had told him they put the dog down and would not tell him nothing else nor would talk to him any more about it. The reciept sayed he had 7 days to come back and get it. He was also telling me the guy that runs animal control got in trouble a couple of years back for taking the animals and of the facility and selling them for a profit for him self. He kinda thinks that was what happen because it was a full blooded pitt bull which would have got a couple hundred bucks for sale. And he said he also saw the dog here in town a couple of weeks after he took the dog in.
Very sad, can you go to the other thread about animal control here on the forum and and ask the news editor what they know about the guy getting in trouble there that was selling the dogs? I would like to know more about that. Others most likely would also like to know about it.
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okee24
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Posted: Tue Oct 14th, 2008 03:19 am |
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| About the same thing happen to one of my friends when he took his dog to animal control. His mother inlaw told him that his dog had showed its teeth to his 1 year old son. He had his wife take the dog to animal control on a friday and told them they where moving and could not keep the dog and animal control gave them i quess a reciept saying they could come back and get the dog within 7 days. As the weekend went on the mother inlaws story started to change and it turned out the dog did nothing wrong she just wanted it gone because it was a pitt bull. So he went back to get the dog on monday or tuesday and animal control had told him they put the dog down and would not tell him nothing else nor would talk to him any more about it. The reciept sayed he had 7 days to come back and get it. He was also telling me the guy that runs animal control got in trouble a couple of years back for taking the animals and of the facility and selling them for a profit for him self. He kinda thinks that was what happen because it was a full blooded pitt bull which would have got a couple hundred bucks for sale. And he said he also saw the dog here in town a couple of weeks after he took the dog in.
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missk
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Posted: Wed Oct 8th, 2008 12:35 pm |
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Razorback wrote:
The animal that needs to be quarantined does not have to go to animal control if the owner is willing and has a place to quarantine the animal.....A animal crate from Wal Mart will do the job. The quarantine is so that the animal can be watched and does not come in contact with other animals or humans. I know this to be true as my daughter was bitten and this is what animal control told the owners of the dog.
Missk: Well, that's a better choice, but I don't know the whole story on this one, I am fairly sure the people were new to the whole process and didn't know they could hold the animal at home, and just maybe animal control suggested they let them hold it. I don't know, we have to hear the follow up story I guess. If it had been mine, I would have kept it at home, but I have --many, many years ago, taken one to animal control (in another county) and had them hold the animal for 10 days.
Hopefully all involved in this tragedy will learn from it and it won't happen again.
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Meems
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Posted: Tue Oct 7th, 2008 11:23 pm |
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missk wrote: Razorback75 wrote: Does anyone know if there was another option. Could they have quarantined it somewhere else that they did not have to sign over ownership of the dog? Maybe at a vet's office? I am also wondering if there might have been some confusion because they didn't just take one dog to be quarantined. They took both dogs there -- one they wanted back and the other they did not want back.
In a case like this, I do believe animal control is the one required to hold the animal in quarantine, really not sure if a vet will do it or can do it. As for confusion about the two dogs, if so, it shouldn't have happened, that's why paperwork was invented, but I don't believe so because they use the story that the animal was pacing in his cage and acting funny. I believe that was most likey due to being away from home and caged which it had never been before. Poor Baby, he's at the rainbow bridge now. The animal that needs to be quarantined does not have to go to animal control if the owner is willing and has a place to quarantine the animal.....A animal crate from Wal Mart will do the job. The quarantine is so that the animal can be watched and does not come in contact with other animals or humans. I know this to be true as my daughter was bitten and this is what animal control told the owners of the dog.
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missk
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Posted: Tue Oct 7th, 2008 09:29 pm |
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Razorback75 wrote: Does anyone know if there was another option. Could they have quarantined it somewhere else that they did not have to sign over ownership of the dog? Maybe at a vet's office? I am also wondering if there might have been some confusion because they didn't just take one dog to be quarantined. They took both dogs there -- one they wanted back and the other they did not want back.
In a case like this, I do believe animal control is the one required to hold the animal in quarantine, really not sure if a vet will do it or can do it. As for confusion about the two dogs, if so, it shouldn't have happened, that's why paperwork was invented, but I don't believe so because they use the story that the animal was pacing in his cage and acting funny. I believe that was most likey due to being away from home and caged which it had never been before. Poor Baby, he's at the rainbow bridge now.
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Razorback75
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Posted: Tue Oct 7th, 2008 06:46 pm |
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| Does anyone know if there was another option. Could they have quarantined it somewhere else that they did not have to sign over ownership of the dog? Maybe at a vet's office? I am also wondering if there might have been some confusion because they didn't just take one dog to be quarantined. They took both dogs there -- one they wanted back and the other they did not want back.
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Okeechobee News Editor
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Posted: Tue Oct 7th, 2008 04:51 pm |
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Reporter Pete Gawda is working on a follow up story about Animal Control. We will try to obtain answers to the questions posed here to include in that article.
I do read some of the posts on the forum, but I don't read every thread or every post. So if you want to draw my attention to something, please send me an email at kelsken@newszap.com or a private message on the forum.
If you have a complaint about a thread or a post on this forum, email webmaster@newszap.com.
Katrina Elsken
Executive Editor Okeechobee News
Last edited on Tue Oct 7th, 2008 08:01 pm by Okeechobee News Editor
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missk
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Posted: Tue Oct 7th, 2008 04:33 am |
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| I had some questions in my recent post regarding this and in my post had asked the Okeechobee news editor to please get those answers. Do they read this and respond or should they be addressed personally? I thought they would answer, also, if they do another story in the newspaper, will they post it on here? I don't get the paper.
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missk
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Posted: Sun Oct 5th, 2008 03:32 pm |
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The Daughter wrote: missk wrote: many people are mis-informed, told that animal control won't put an animal down and then , the next day or few days it's been euthanized and the bodies taken to the dump.
I would like to know the numbers of animals actually coming in each month and how many put down, and how many adopted or sent to other rescues , OKEECHOBEE NEWS EDITOR, can we get those numbers? I know you can get them and it must be public record somewhere since taxpayers pay for the services/shelter. Please get those numbers for us.
**The daughter wrote) ...You might want to get your facts st right on the animals being taken to the dump. It is my understanding that after they are euthanized, they are buried in a mass gave out at the pet cometary. If this is not the case, I also would like the paper to look into this.
***(Missk writes in response)I've been told different, that's why I would like Okeechobee news to look further into all of this and get some answers to other questions so all can see the answers, then we all will know the answers. I cannot imagine a mass grave every month for over 300 animals at the cemetary, just isn't happening, I'm sure. The cemetary would already be full and have no space.
(The Daughter wrote ..Is animal control perfect? No it is not, because as human beings, we make mistakes. ***(missk writes response.) yes, we all make mistakes, but we are also supposed to learn from our mistakes. How long has animal control been here and doing this work?
(The Daughter wrote)..Can you possible even think if this dog actually did have rabies, and this young pregnant girl got them from the bites? She would have died , along with her baby.
I do take serious issues with the writer of the article, I think it was totally unprofessional for him to word the article in the way he did- he did not have to be so crude as to say the dogs head had to be cut off. There were much better ways to word this.
***(Missk writes response)to determine if it was even possible that the dog could have been rabid, there were questions to ask, rabies shot history, even if behind on shots, if the dog had several other shots over the years, the odds were extremely low that it had rabies. Get a Titer test, they could call a vet and get opinion regarding this information, of course it would be terrible if the pregnant girl got rabies, but that's why they have quarantine for animals, and all of the other info I mentioned should have been taken.
(The Daughter wrote)...As for not allowing volunteers anymore, they can't, there insurance will not allow it, other wise my daughter would still be there several days a week because they really need help, they are over worked, under staffed and not appreciated.
***(missk writes response) Then they have the wrong type of insurance, every animal control and humane society in other counties have volunteers, Okeechobee is the only one that I know of that doesn't. Many non-profit shelters depend on volunteers, it's close to impossible to do everything all by themselves and get things done properly. AND it's funny that other agencies such as boy scouts will allow their guys to do volunteer work at other places, they also have to have insurance that covers this volunteering. This is another question I would like Okeechobee news to get the answer to. Animal control use to allow volunteering.
(The Daughter wrote)...They don't have the funds to make and maintain a web site for animals that are up for adoption, I looked into this when my daughter was there. Although...the news paper could certainly make an offer to host several "photos of the week" of animals for adoption. I think animal control should make the effort to try and work something out with the local news paper on this issue.
**(missk writes response) There are free websites out there and also petfinders is free. A volunteer could take pictures of animals and do this work from their home, therefore the insurance issue is NOT an issue. No excuse there at all for not doing this. ALSO, the Okeechobee news has offered in the past a page for adoptable animals, animal control stopped doing it many years ago. What is the reason for this do you think?
(The Daughter wrote)..If I took the time to report an animal being abused, and felt animal control did nothing, as a previous poster mentioned, especially for six months, you can bet your butt I would have been on the phone with animal control everyday till they went out there and did something about it.
**(missk writes response)maybe this person that wrote about that, did exactly that, what do you do when they don't come out, there is nothing you can do except complain and then finally as a taxpayer that payes their salaries and pays to run it, get the community together and ask for changes to be made.
(the Daughter wrote)..When my cat went missing, I called animal control to see if it had been taken there, I called everywhere.....after two days, I went into animal control because my cat is all black and they have allot of cats that color, it was not there...for the next two days I went into animal control, I did not want to take the word of animal control, not because I did not trust them, but because I personally needed to see every cat that was there and frankly, it was my responsibility to try and find my cat. Finally, I think it was on the 5th day that I found Binx , I did not have the funds that day to pay the fine, but I called everyday and went and visited my cat for the few days he was there.
I think this was a tragic situation all the way around, I see misunderstandings on both party's. In an act of good faith, with no admittance of wrong, I feel it would be kind if animal control offered an adopted animal free to this family. While this will obviously NOT replace the loss of a beloved family pet, it may help start a healing process for both sides.
**(missk writes response) good idea,
(The Daughter wrote)...As for low cost shots, the pet store next to publix offers them every month and there are always people there for this so we do have some place in town.
Owning pets is not cheap, and the responsibility of the owner. I find so many animals loose in Okeechobee, I do everything I can to find the owners, I keep them in my home for a least a week, I call all the vets and animal control on a daily basis and make flyer's. There has only been one animal that I had to ever turn over to animal control and that was a cat that was so Ferrel there was no hope for it.
It may sound cruel, but I much prefer an animal to be put to sleep than roaming the streets, starving, being abused by some idiots in town and producing more pups and kittens.
**(missk writes response)we don't just need low cost shots, we need spaying and neutering, that's teh reason so many animals are running loose and why so many are killed at animal control every month. Low cost spay/ neuter program is NEEDED in this county and it's time that Okeechobee catch up with the times, this needs to be in the budget, they also need to do the same as WPB and make it mandatory that owrs get their pets fixed. That is the bottom line and the only way to reduce the over-population and the Killings at animal control!!
(The Daughter wrote)..I am sorry if I sound upset, but I get so frustrated with people trashing animal control, no they are not perfect but they do the best that they can with what they have to work with. And I do get upset with people who abuse the system, by continuing to get animals, not taking care of them and just dropping them off at animal control and running out a getting another one like it's a stuffed animal that requires no care.
**(missk writes response)I'm not trashing animal control, but trying to make people aware that there needs to be some changes made. I realize they do sometimes do the best that they can, but then sometimes not the best they can do, for instance working on finding some of the poorsouls there a home instead of killing them, working with other rescues, doiing the website, petfinders and pictures in the local paper of adoptable animals. In my book "Killing" is a sin, doesn't matter if it's human or animal.
I would still like to know the answers to the questions I had, numbers of animals taken into animal control monthly, how many adopted out, how many euthanized how many went to other rescues. And the question re: insurance and volunteers.
Last edited on Sun Oct 5th, 2008 03:36 pm by missk
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The Daughter
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Posted: Sun Oct 5th, 2008 02:59 am |
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missk wrote: many people are mis-informed, told that animal control won't put an animal down and then , the next day or few days it's been euthanized and the bodies taken to the dump.
I would like to know the numbers of animals actually coming in each month and how many put down, and how many adopted or sent to other rescues , OKEECHOBEE NEWS EDITOR, can we get those numbers? I know you can get them and it must be public record somewhere since taxpayers pay for the services/shelter. Please get those numbers for us.
You might want to get your facts st right on the animals being taken to the dump. It is my understanding that after they are euthanized, they are buried in a mass gave out at the pet cometary. If this is not the case, I also would like the paper to look into this.
Is animal control perfect? No it is not, because as human beings, we make mistakes.
Can you possible even think if this dog actually did have rabies, and this young pregnant girl got them from the bites? She would have died , along with her baby.
I do take serious issues with the writer of the article, I think it was totally unprofessional for him to word the article in the way he did- he did not have to be so crude as to say the dogs head had to be cut off. There were much better ways to word this.
As for not allowing volunteers anymore, they can't, there insurance will not allow it, other wise my daughter would still be there several days a week because they really need help, they are over worked, under staffed and not appreciated.
They don't have the funds to make and maintain a web site for animals that are up for adoption, I looked into this when my daughter was there. Although...the news paper could certainly make an offer to host several "photos of the week" of animals for adoption. I think animal control should make the effort to try and work something out with the local news paper on this issue.
If I took the time to report an animal being abused, and felt animal control did nothing, as a previous poster mentioned, especially for six months, you can bet your butt I would have been on the phone with animal control everyday till they went out there and did something about it.
When my cat went missing, I called animal control to see if it had been taken there, I called everywhere.....after two days, I went into animal control because my cat is all black and they have allot of cats that color, it was not there...for the next two days I went into animal control, I did not want to take the word of animal control, not because I did not trust them, but because I personally needed to see every cat that was there and frankly, it was my responsibility to try and find my cat. Finally, I think it was on the 5th day that I found Binx , I did not have the funds that day to pay the fine, but I called everyday and went and visited my cat for the few days he was there.
I think this was a tragic situation all the way around, I see misunderstandings on both party's. In an act of good faith, with no admittance of wrong, I feel it would be kind if animal control offered an adopted animal free to this family. While this will obviously NOT replace the loss of a beloved family pet, it may help start a healing process for both sides.
As for low cost shots, the pet store next to publix offers them every month and there are always people there for this so we do have some place in town.
Owning pets is not cheap, and the responsibility of the owner. I find so many animals loose in Okeechobee, I do everything I can to find the owners, I keep them in my home for a least a week, I call all the vets and animal control on a daily basis and make flyer's. There has only been one animal that I had to ever turn over to animal control and that was a cat that was so Ferrel there was no hope for it.
It may sound cruel, but I much prefer an animal to be put to sleep than roaming the streets, starving, being abused by some idiots in town and producing more pups and kittens.
I am sure if the dog had tested positive for rabis, the owner would be grateful to animal control, but this sadly was not the case. I know if this situation had happened to me, I would be pissed, but I also know I would have been calling and or going to see my animal on a daily basis during this time. But it is easy to say things or think of doing things after the fact.
I am sorry if I sound upset, but I get so frustrated with people trashing animal control, no they are not perfect but they do the best that they can with what they have to work with. And I do get upset with people who abuse the system, by continuing to get animals, not taking care of them and just dropping them off at animal control and running out a getting another one like it's a stuffed animal that requires no care.
I notice there are never any "thank yous" in the speak out from owners saying that animal control found there animal and called them, nor do I ever notice any appreciation from the community when they respond to serious abuse of animals and take them in, nurse them and find homes for them. Nor any consideration of the fact that animal control will come a take a animal out of your yard that is trying to kill your beloved pet.
"Bat girls mom"
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missk
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Posted: Sun Oct 5th, 2008 02:09 am |
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many people are mis-informed, told that animal control won't put an animal down and then , the next day or few days it's been euthanized and the bodies taken to the dump.
I would like to know the numbers of animals actually coming in each month and how many put down, and how many adopted or sent to other rescues , OKEECHOBEE NEWS EDITOR, can we get those numbers? I know you can get them and it must be public record somewhere since taxpayers pay for the services/shelter. Please get those numbers for us.
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missk
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Posted: Sat Oct 4th, 2008 04:16 pm |
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Southern Diva wrote: Our animal control is about as professional as a beauty salon full of gossiping ladies,
Calls are returned maybe a week later if then, you report an animal being abused and you get, we are so busy we wont be able to get out there for atleast a week
I had a friend of mine who reported a horse being neglected to animal control, over a six month period the people were never sited for anything, the coggins not up to date and the animals ribs showed terribly, nothing was ever done to them, now I understand they supposidly gave the horse away, or did they shoot it and bury it somewhere or did it die, no one has seen animal control out to find out what happened to this horse and this was an open case , they took the owners word for it
I DONT CALL THAT PROFESSIONAL do you????
I know there are many other stories like this and it upsets some people, but others don't really know what happens at animal control.
many people are mis-informed, told that animal control won't put an animal down and then , the next day or few days it's been euthanized and the bodies taken to the dump.
I would like to know the numbers of animals actually coming in each month and how many put down, and how many adopted or sent to other rescues , OKEECHOBEE NEWS EDITOR, can we get those numbers? I know you can get them and it must be public record somewhere since taxpayers pay for the services/shelter. Please get those numbers for us.
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Southern Diva
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Posted: Sat Oct 4th, 2008 10:31 am |
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Our animal control is about as professional as a beauty salon full of gossiping ladies,
Calls are returned maybe a week later if then, you report an animal being abused and you get, we are so busy we wont be able to get out there for atleast a week
I had a friend of mine who reported a horse being neglected to animal control, over a six month period the people were never sited for anything, the coggins not up to date and the animals ribs showed terribly, nothing was ever done to them, now I understand they supposidly gave the horse away, or did they shoot it and bury it somewhere or did it die, no one has seen animal control out to find out what happened to this horse and this was an open case , they took the owners word for it
I DONT CALL THAT PROFESSIONAL do you????
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missk
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Posted: Sat Oct 4th, 2008 04:39 am |
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missk wrote: A few questions in here for Okeechobee News editor: remainder is just my 2 cents.
The dog would have acted strangely and nervous if it had never been caged before. There is also a Titer test that can be given to see if the animal has been exposed. I can believe that Mr. Neswick didn't realize what he signed and it is animal controls job to fully explain it. To quarantine an animal, they should not have had to sign a relinquish form just to put the dog into quarantine. AND why was he given a card that said pick up on Oct. 3rd? Some of this makes no sense to me.
Also, if the animal was tested on 9/25, when did the results come back from the health department to animal control and who called the family to let them know the results, this is the normal procedure so I didn't hear about it at all. Can someone find out? The Health department usually calls the family for sure.
If the dog was behind in rabies shots for 5 months and had a shot pryor , the odds are he most likely would NOT have had rabies and many people know this, animal control should know this for sure. Shots are good for 3 years, there has never been a one year shot, Imrab3 has always been a 3 year shot, they do recommend what Dr. Davis mentioned. Anyone can call the company to get the answer to this question. You can also ask your vet about the Titer test. Also,. many people agree, that after 2 to 3 shots, actually an animal is good , doesn't need anymore. I am a firm believer in rabies shots, but I do think we are over vaccinating our loved pets all for the mighty dollar to the state or county(for the tags), here is a link to give you more information:
http://www.squidoo.com/rabiesvaccine
We should focus on wildlife, to irradicate rabies, you need to vaccinate the wildlife, and yes, there is a way, it's dropped in rural areas and very, very rural areas for the animals to get. I would like to know the stats on how many cases of rabies in domestic animals have occured in florida over the past 5 years,and especially in Okeechobee county. Can the Okeechobee News Editor get this figure for us?
Bottom line is this, if you have a problem, don't use animal control, use another in another county or go to the humane society, there are a few close to us. animal control is too busy and can make mistakes such as this. They get many calls, and only have a small crew, and most people think they try to find homes for the animals that they turn in, when indeed they do not. Please people, spay and neuter your pets so that the numbers of animals killed at animal control is decreased, because right now, I'm guessing it s a good 300-400 a month that they put down. maybe Okeechobee News Editor can get the numbers on this also.
Sorry, now I see that it does mention when the results came back, but it seems no one called the family on the 30th to give the results.
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missk
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 09:40 pm |
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Razorback75 wrote: Sounds like a failure to communicate.
The pet owner, upset because the dog bit the pregnant girl, trying to do the right thing by taking the dog to be quarantined. He probably signed the form they gave him without reading it.
There may also have been some confusion because he also took the stray dog that had been at his house for three weeks and said there were too many dogs at his house.
Lessons to be learned -- get your pets vaccinated and keep the rabies shots up to date. It's important for the health of your family. And -- don't ever sign anything without reading it carefully first. Confusion is not an excuse, animal control is supposed to be organized and professional. there should have not been a mistake. And there is a test to give an animal that can determine IF they have been exposed to rabies. It doesn't say if they have rabies, but it can tell you more info as to if exposed to it.
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missk
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 09:32 pm |
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A few questions in here for Okeechobee News editor: remainder is just my 2 cents.
The dog would have acted strangely and nervous if it had never been caged before. There is also a Titer test that can be given to see if the animal has been exposed. I can believe that Mr. Neswick didn't realize what he signed and it is animal controls job to fully explain it. To quarantine an animal, they should not have had to sign a relinquish form just to put the dog into quarantine. AND why was he given a card that said pick up on Oct. 3rd? Some of this makes no sense to me.
Also, if the animal was tested on 9/25, when did the results come back from the health department to animal control and who called the family to let them know the results, this is the normal procedure so I didn't hear about it at all. Can someone find out? The Health department usually calls the family for sure.
If the dog was behind in rabies shots for 5 months and had a shot pryor , the odds are he most likely would NOT have had rabies and many people know this, animal control should know this for sure. Shots are good for 3 years, there has never been a one year shot, Imrab3 has always been a 3 year shot, they do recommend what Dr. Davis mentioned. Anyone can call the company to get the answer to this question. You can also ask your vet about the Titer test. Also,. many people agree, that after 2 to 3 shots, actually an animal is good , doesn't need anymore. I am a firm believer in rabies shots, but I do think we are over vaccinating our loved pets all for the mighty dollar to the state or county(for the tags), here is a link to give you more information:
http://www.squidoo.com/rabiesvaccine
We should focus on wildlife, to irradicate rabies, you need to vaccinate the wildlife, and yes, there is a way, it's dropped in rural areas and very, very rural areas for the animals to get. I would like to know the stats on how many cases of rabies in domestic animals have occured in florida over the past 5 years,and especially in Okeechobee county. Can the Okeechobee News Editor get this figure for us?
Bottom line is this, if you have a problem, don't use animal control, use another in another county or go to the humane society, there are a few close to us. animal control is too busy and can make mistakes such as this. They get many calls, and only have a small crew, and most people think they try to find homes for the animals that they turn in, when indeed they do not. Please people, spay and neuter your pets so that the numbers of animals killed at animal control is decreased, because right now, I'm guessing it s a good 300-400 a month that they put down. maybe Okeechobee News Editor can get the numbers on this also.
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Razorback75
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 06:37 pm |
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To test an animal for rabies, they have to cut the head off and send it off to test test the brain tissue. That is the only way to actually test for rabies.
They do kill the animal before they cut its head off.
Last edited on Tue Oct 7th, 2008 06:37 pm by Razorback75
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Themotgus
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 04:26 pm |
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Okeechobee News Editor wrote: “ When the animal exhibited erratic behavior, they had it decapitated to test for rabies."
WTF? Decapitated?
The Mot Gus is disgusted.
The Mot Gus©™ is the 3rd Person!
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Razorback75
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 04:19 pm |
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Sounds like a failure to communicate.
The pet owner, upset because the dog bit the pregnant girl, trying to do the right thing by taking the dog to be quarantined. He probably signed the form they gave him without reading it.
There may also have been some confusion because he also took the stray dog that had been at his house for three weeks and said there were too many dogs at his house.
Lessons to be learned -- get your pets vaccinated and keep the rabies shots up to date. It's important for the health of your family. And -- don't ever sign anything without reading it carefully first.
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Okeechobee News Editor
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 03:38 pm |
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Pet euthanized
Man thought quarantined animal would be returned to him
By Pete Gawda
Okeechobee News
The importance of keeping your dog’s rabies vaccinations up to date and understanding what you sign was brought home by a sad incident at Okeechobee Cvounty Animal control.
Oreo, a Boston Terrier, along with Red Dog, a cur-bulldog, were part of the Neswick family in Treasure Island. On Sept. 23, as dogs sometimes do, they were fighting over a food bowl. According to Anthony Neswick, his pregnant teenage daughter, Kayla, tried to break them up and was bitten. The daughter was taken to Raulerson Hospital for treatment. Mr. Neswick said he was told by hospital officials to have the dog checked for rabies. The same day he took the two dogs to Okeechobee County Animal Control.
Mr. Neswick said he told animal control officers that Oreo had bitten his daughter and had also bitten Red Dog. His intent, he said, was to have Oreo quarantined for 10 days to see if the dog had rabies. He planned to give Red Dog up for adoption. Red Dog was a stray that he had for about three weeks. He knew that Oreo’s rabies vaccination was not up to date. He had never vaccinated Red Dog and did not know the dog’s vaccination history.
Mr. Neswick said he was given a card that had a pickup date of Oct. 3 on it. It was his understanding that Oreo would be quarantined until Oct. 3 and then he could pick the dog up if it was healthy.
He also signed a document that stated: “I am relinquishing ownership of the above described animal (Oreo) to Okeechobee County Animal Control and understand that in doing so the animal may be humanely euthanized. I further understand that I am required by law to notify animal control if described animal has bitten anyone within the last 10 days.”
Mr. Neswick stated he was not aware he had signed such a form.
This form is required to be signed by all owners who turn in their dogs.
The animal control officials report stated that Oreo was put into quarantine to be observed for 10 days. The report goes on to state that Oreo showed signs of aggression. Due to the victim’s condition, it was decided to euthanize the dog and test the remains for rabies. Oreo was decapitated on Sept. 25. The results came back negative on Sept. 30.
Animal control officials claimed that Mr. Neswick at first told them he was turning in the dogs because he had too many dogs and a newborn baby on the way. Upon further questioning, animal control officials stated they learned that Oreo had bitten Mr. Neswick’s pregnant daughter.
Mr. Neswick said he called several times over the days following Sept. 23 and was told everything was OK. On Oct. 1 he came to animal control and learned that Oreo had been put to sleep.
Okeechobee County Administrator Lyndon Bonner defended his staff’s actions.
“My animal control staff is a competent group of professionals doing their job,” he said. “My crew made a difficult decision, a prudent decision, I support them.”
“There is only one definitive test for rabies,” he asserted. “When you look at all the facts, they made a wise decision.”
He said the animal control workers acted out of caution since a pregnant girl had been bitten. When the animal exhibited erratic behavior, they had it decapitated to test for rabies.
“I feel for the family,” he added.
Local veterinarian Randall Mims stressed the importance of regular rabies shots for dogs.
There is some debate about whether a dog should be vaccinated once a year or once every three years. Different vaccines are used in each case. He recommends vaccination once a year.
“I have more confidence in it,” he said of the annual vaccination. “It has worked well in the past.”
“I think it is extremely important to have regular rabies vaccinations,” Dr. Mims said. He said that around here even a house pet that only goes outside to go to the bathroom could come in contact with a rabid wild animal.
“Rabies has no cure once the symptoms start, whether it is in a person or animal,” he asserted. “Once the symptoms start, it may be too late.”
He said the rule of thumb is to quarantine the animal for 10 days to see if it shows signs of rabies. However, he cautioned that each case if different. He said that it is the law that animal bites must be reported to authorities.
Another local veterinarian, Dr. Candice Davis, favors a three-year vaccine. She recommends a pet be vaccinated at 16 weeks of age, then one year later, after that vaccination every three years.
She said the one year and three year vaccination were equally effective.
She said that a 10 day quarantine or immediate euthanizations would depend on the situation. If the dog appeared healthy, it might be quarantined.
“Obviously we put the life of the humans before dogs,” she said.
She also stressed that it is important for all pets, even inside pets to be vaccinated because they could be infected by a wild animal.
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1GR8L8Y
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 10:46 am |
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| Okay, the family puts their pet in the "hospital" for quarantine because the pet bit a family member. If my dog or my cats had to be quarantined, I as the "parent" would be visiting everyday. My dog and my cats are my "children." When my children were in the hospital, I visited them if they were older. When they were babies, I never left their sides. I am not saying that what happened is right. I sure wouldn't be making phone calls to see how "Oreo" was. For God's sake, the poor animal was probably going crazy in that kennel. I would have been spending my time at that place giving my animal kudos to help with the transition. And shame on the AC for not being honest about the whole situation and then "accidentally" euthanizing the animal. They should be charged with cruelty to animals and fraudulent practices. I was under the understanding that when an animal is rescued, that the reason they charge so much for you to adopt them is because they are given their vaccinations and spayed or neutered. Boy, was I given false information.
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The Real McCoy
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 04:15 am |
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| Unvaccinated animals should not be quarantined at home...rabies is deadly, once symptoms appear death is virtually unstoppable. An animal left at home can run away, get run over by a car, get taken out of state or die of an unrelated illness...all of these leave the bite victim with the Russian roulette choice of taking an expensive series of shots or risking a very painful, not to mention fatal, disease (sounds like an episode of "House"). Quarantine in an animal control facility should erase most of these concerns...at least the animal is there for all to see. Again, vaccination, for one or three years, virtually eliminates those risks-please vaccinate!!
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missk
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Posted: Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 02:45 am |
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Meems wrote:
If an animal bites someone and they suggest that quarantine is necessary, animal control would rather you quarantine the animal if possible than to bring it to them even if the police are involved.
I can't comment on this, I don't know how they like to handle it. I do know that the owners seemed confused and new at something like this situation. they wanted to do what was best and IF things were not explained to them, I think that's bad. If they signed something without reading it and went by what they were being told, that's wrong also. When someone has you sign a contract of any kind, they are to explain it completely and not try to make it seem something else.
I don't know how anyone could sign a form saying "put animal down" unless someone was telling them it didn't mean anything, that it was just a form that had to let you know what "could" happen. If they signed a contract/form as someone mentioned, I hope they look at the one that is produced and make sure it's their signature. don't trust anyone, even county officials, another form could be forged to make themselves look good.
AND if animal control talked them into signing a form to have the animal put down, that is very wrong. this is a family pet, bit no one outside of the family, didn't have a history of biting, no reason to make an owner sign to put their pet down. NO REASON AT ALL
I find it very unprofessional that animal control has not responded to the channel 5 news, no return phone calls , no nothing. It seems they are all maybe sitting somewhere trying to get their stories together before responding. Doesn't look good for them.
Last edited on Fri Oct 3rd, 2008 02:50 am by missk
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Okeechobee News Editor
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 11:19 pm |
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| Pete Gawda is working on a more indepth story on this case for the Friday edition of the Okeechobee News. He is interviewing the dog owner, county officials and local veterinarians. He also obtained a copy of the release form the dog owner signed when he left the dog at the animal control facility.
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Meems
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 10:42 pm |
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missk wrote: The Real McCoy wrote: All animal bites that get medical treatment or require law enforcement involvement have to be reported. If the animal does not have current rabies shots then that animal is quarantined for 10 days at the AC facility. If the animal has current shots it is quarnatined 10 days at the owners residence. If the unvaccinated animal has been in contact with a known rabid animal then the animal will be put down and tested in most cases. Please keep your pets shots up to date!!
True and yes, please get your pets their shots, remember they are now good for 3 years not just one year and please spay and neuter. If you need assistance with finances for spaying and neutering, there are several places, one is "Stray No More", you can find out about it from Okeechobee vets office. the organization will help pay the bill. Although I think our county needs to have their own low cost spay/neuter program. Too many animals are being put down for no good reason. We actually should have it be mandatory that all animals be spayed and neutered
one piece of information for you: the dog in question had not been in contact with another aniaml which could have posible rabies.
ALSO: When animals are brought into animal control, they go into a kennel/cage, they have no idea if that animal had bitten anyone or been exposed to rabies. you go in to look at animals, you pet and handle them if you are interested in adopting, they have not had shots that anyone knows of, or maybe they have by their owners, no one knows. Animal control does not vet the animals before putting them out there for adoption. 5-7 days later if the animals are not adopted or claimed by an owner, they are put down. Just think, maybe one was exposed to a rabid animal and you handled it, but then it was put down, or maybe that puppy is a carrier of parvo and you take it home to your dog because you handled the puppy.
does any of this seem okay to anyone?
If an animal bites someone and they suggest that quarantine is necessary, animal control would rather you quarantine the animal if possible than to bring it to them even if the police are involved.
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 06:11 pm |
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The Real McCoy wrote: All animal bites that get medical treatment or require law enforcement involvement have to be reported. If the animal does not have current rabies shots then that animal is quarantined for 10 days at the AC facility. If the animal has current shots it is quarnatined 10 days at the owners residence. If the unvaccinated animal has been in contact with a known rabid animal then the animal will be put down and tested in most cases. Please keep your pets shots up to date!!
True and yes, please get your pets their shots, remember they are now good for 3 years not just one year and please spay and neuter. If you need assistance with finances for spaying and neutering, there are several places, one is "Stray No More", you can find out about it from Okeechobee vets office. the organization will help pay the bill. Although I think our county needs to have their own low cost spay/neuter program. Too many animals are being put down for no good reason. We actually should have it be mandatory that all animals be spayed and neutered
one piece of information for you: the dog in question had not been in contact with another aniaml which could have posible rabies.
ALSO: When animals are brought into animal control, they go into a kennel/cage, they have no idea if that animal had bitten anyone or been exposed to rabies. you go in to look at animals, you pet and handle them if you are interested in adopting, they have not had shots that anyone knows of, or maybe they have by their owners, no one knows. Animal control does not vet the animals before putting them out there for adoption. 5-7 days later if the animals are not adopted or claimed by an owner, they are put down. Just think, maybe one was exposed to a rabid animal and you handled it, but then it was put down, or maybe that puppy is a carrier of parvo and you take it home to your dog because you handled the puppy.
does any of this seem okay to anyone?
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 05:58 pm |
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local mother wrote: http://www.wptv.com/content/tcoast/story.aspx?content_id=3295725c-1765-49f3-8829-f1bd666d3fe8
Thanks for putting this link in. the community needs to know about animal control. Some think that they work hard at finding homes for the animals ,e tc. This is not true. They say they don't have the time,, so why won't they appoint someone off of the property to help out as a volunteer, insurance is no excuse for that, the volunteer can't get hurt posting on a website or petfinders.
Do they commissioners have anything to say about this? Why didn't the manager at animal control return channel 5's phone calls.
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The Real McCoy
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 05:51 pm |
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| All animal bites that get medical treatment or require law enforcement involvement have to be reported. If the animal does not have current rabies shots then that animal is quarantined for 10 days at the AC facility. If the animal has current shots it is quarnatined 10 days at the owners residence. If the unvaccinated animal has been in contact with a known rabid animal then the animal will be put down and tested in most cases. Please keep your pets shots up to date!!
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 05:50 pm |
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Meems wrote: First after reading the ardicle I don't understand why these people took the dog to animal control in the first place. There is no mention of a report to police or anyone else. They just seemed to have taken the dog and expected animal control to house the dog for 10 days.
I certainly can understand how things got confused since there was no police reports or animal control report.
Why didn't these people just keep the dog separated from the others. Crates can be bought at Wal Mart for around $50 for the largest I think.
Also the dog in question by the picture at least is not a Boston Terrier. It may be a terrier of some kind but definately not a Boston as we have owned Bostons for the last 30 years.
When a dog bites someone, even the hospital has to report it, they suggested that they take the animal to animal control for quarantine. When a dog bites, even if it's the owner, if hospital or vet is involved, you must quarantine the animal for 10 days.
Animal control is required to offer this to an owner, hold for 10 days, if no signs, release and require an update of shots. That's it. NOT KILL IT.
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Meems
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 05:15 pm |
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First after reading the ardicle I don't understand why these people took the dog to animal control in the first place. There is no mention of a report to police or anyone else. They just seemed to have taken the dog and expected animal control to house the dog for 10 days.
I certainly can understand how things got confused since there was no police reports or animal control report.
Why didn't these people just keep the dog separated from the others. Crates can be bought at Wal Mart for around $50 for the largest I think.
Also the dog in question by the picture at least is not a Boston Terrier. It may be a terrier of some kind but definately not a Boston as we have owned Bostons for the last 30 years.
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local mother
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:34 pm |
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http://www.wptv.com/content/tcoast/story.aspx?content_id=3295725c-1765-49f3-8829-f1bd666d3fe8
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:13 pm |
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southern mom wrote: What was wrong with the dog, why was it being contained? I hope they have a really good explanation for this....
Nothing wrong with dog, they were to hold it for 10 days, the story is on http://www.wptv.com
They screwed Up is what they did. I hope the people sue them.
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designdiva
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:12 pm |
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go to wptv.com
they have the story...I would link it for you , but I am having some problems with the comp this a.m..... The only site I can get into today is this one...
STRANGE INDEED............Diva 
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:10 pm |
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local mother wrote: Does anyone have a link to anything online about this. I haven't heard about it yet.
You can go to http://www.wptv.com , last night it was on the first page where there is a box and several stories will roll thru, watch for it and click on see story. You''s ee a picture of a dog.
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local mother
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:02 pm |
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| Does anyone have a link to anything online about this. I haven't heard about it yet.
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local mother
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 04:02 pm |
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| Does anyone have a link to anything online about this. I haven't heard about it yet.
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 03:43 pm |
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The Daughter wrote: I just myself saw this article.......and I am very confused. First off, my heart goes out to the family who lost there pet. I mean that.
My daughter vol. for two summers at animal control, and I just don't think people actually realize how hard they work, and how much they LOVE animals. I personally know the employee who has to put the animals to sleep....and she does it with love.
I am confused why the dog was taken there for shots.....unless things have changed, they do not provide shots there. Even when you adopt an animal from there, which we have you can take the paper work they give you and you get a discount to have it spayed or neutered. But as an owner of an animal , you are responsible for the shots.
When I adopted our cat from them, I brought it home to give it a bath, and it bit the crap out of me, it was totally my fault, I should have not attempted to do it so soon upon adopting it. Three days later my finger was very infected.....the hospital by law has to call Animal Control (which I did not know)......since I had not had the cat but three days, it had not had its shots yets.......the law requires that the animal be held for 7-10 days, if it has no serious issues, like parvo (in dogs) etc. you may have your animal back, but you MUST show evidence within a matter of days to show that you have taken the animal to the vet for shots.
I am curious if something like this happened, and possible the animal was sick and they had to by law put it to sleep? Or possible it had a history of biting? All this is speculation of course but lets not jump to conclusions as of yet.....there is NO WAY anyone at animal control would put a family pet or any animal to sleep unless they have to.
You just would not believe all that goes on at Animal Control. The most beautiful beloved pets are just abandoned, family's are called, letters sent and they just don't show up. Okeechobee County has a huge problem with pit pulls........and the young teenagers think it's cool to get them as puppies and then when they get to big to handle, they think nothing of dropping them off at animal control, when they are no longer adoptable.......and run off like fools to get another little one.
Let me take this time to also say........go to Animal Control, there is no need to buy a pet........at any given time they have pure breed cats and dogs...........and of course the lovely mutts that make the best pets!!!!
And please, spay and neuter your dogs and cats!
"bat girls" mom
The dog wasn't taken there for shots, the owners voluntarily took the dog there to be quarantined for 10 days, animal control was to keep it for the 10 days to make sure the dog was fine. The owner would have had to pay a boarding fee to animal control, then take it to vet for shots. They put the dog down immediately. This should not have happend.
In my opinion based on what i've been told, animal control does not try to find homes for the animals they get in there and they do not take volunteers to help out. Where is their website with pictures of animals? Do they place them on petfinders, they don't put any pictures in the newspaper either. They need to make the public aware of what animals they have and try to find homes before putting them down. I've seen no evidence of working with other rescues either, someone told me they do not send any animals to other rescues. This is just not right.
For those of you who have to give up or turn in an animal, Please take it to the humane society, either in highlands county or stewart, they will have a better chance of living and finding a home. If they go to animal control, it's pretty much a sure death sentence.
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missk
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Posted: Thu Oct 2nd, 2008 03:30 pm |
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outside the box wrote: Animal control starts with the animal owner. We have enough problems in this world that tax payers money could be spent on instead of another government entity taking care of what others fail to do so.
Spay or nueter your pets. If you can't raise them, don't have them. This is not in regard to your particular point regarding this particular animal as I don't know the sto | | |